Even opportunities you pursued without success last year may suddenly open up again during the first quarter of this year.

If your job search
last year didn't end as you'd hoped --- with an offer for a full-time job -- it's time to set aside your disappointment, update your resume with any
temporary, consulting or project work you did recently, and jump back into the
job market. The first quarter of the year is a busy time for hiring activity. Employers
often budget for new jobs to start in January or February of a given year.

Earlier this month, for example, the U.S.
Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Employment Situation report indicated that
non-farm payroll employment increased by 113,000 net new jobs in January -- with employment growth occurring in
several areas including professional services, leisure and hospitality,
construction and manufacturing.

There are also often vacancies
created by people who decide to move back to cities and states where their
family members live after visiting those relatives during the holiday season.
When those folks give notice of their intentions to leave their jobs, their
positions become available for external job applicants if their employers don't have
qualified employees to fill those roles.

Add to these
opportunities the people who made changing jobs early in 2014 their New Year's
resolutions. As with the folks voluntarily
relocating and vacating their jobs, these unexpected vacancies often need to be
filled quickly.

Not that you'll be job hunting alone. The first quarter is a
time when many people jump into the job market including people who suspended
their job hunting activities the last several weeks of 2013 because they
assumed little interviewing or hiring was done then.

Nonetheless, with the new jobs created by employers early
each year and the turnover created by people voluntarily leaving or changing
jobs, a lack of success last year in your search doesn't mean a job search
relaunched this month can't produce results for you. Quite the contrary.

Even opportunities you pursued without success last year may
suddenly open up again during the first quarter of this year. It could be
particularly productive to re-contact companies that interviewed you last year,
especially if you were one of the last few candidates considered for a
position. The very fact that you were interviewed means the company felt you
were qualified for the job. Generally, only the most qualified candidates from
the dozens or hundreds of resumes a company receives for a vacancy make it to
the interview phase of the hiring process.

Recognize, too, if that same company is expanding, it may
have created another position similar to the one you interviewed for last year
that would be a perfect fit for you. The person hired for the job for which you
were a final contender may have also been promoted, leaving the original job
vacant again. Or that person may have voluntarily decided to leave the company
for a better position or a job in a different industry or city. A host of things could have left the job
vacant again and who better for the company to consider as a possible hire than
someone who made it to the final phase of the interviewing process last year?

Calling that company
and reminding them of your continuing interest and qualifications for the job
could save the organization time in sourcing additional candidates and you a
lot of time making initial contacts with other companies.

Keep in mind, too, the person who was hired for the job last
year may have proven better at the interviews than on the job and the company
may be looking to replace that person. Again, why wouldn't the company want to
interview a former finalist for that job if it were to learn that individual is
available and still interested in working for the company? It's definitely
worth a call or email inquiry, especially if the same recruiter or hiring
manager you previously met still works at the company.

Even if a new recruiter is there, you can let him or her
know of the interviews you had last year. That will convey that you were
qualified for the position --- again, since only people with the most relevant
and impressive resumes and telephone screen responses tend to be the
individuals invited in for interviews.

Naturally you don't have to limit your inquiries to
companies or employers with whom you've already had contact. Broaden your
targets. Take note of companies in your local area or those in or near cities
where you'd like to relocate that have recently announced major projects
they've landed or new stores or offices they're planning to open. Although some
managers or other senior staff may be brought from other locations to help run
those new locations or projects, staffing them will also likely include a fair
number of local hires.

Consider, too, companies in industries the BLS indicated as
adding jobs in January. Identify what you believe to be your transferrable
skills -- e.g. sales, accounting and finance, database management, operations
and/or customer service. These are all among the skills needed by companies in
various industries.

When approaching employers in fields where you haven't
worked before, highlight that you're a quick study with a demonstrated ability
to quickly assimilate information about new products or services and different
industries. Then offer one or more examples of that ability -- either as bullet
points in an email or traditional cover letter submitted with your resume or as
part of a response during a telephone interview or conversation with a company
recruiter or hiring manager.

My point is this: Coupling the new positions employers
typically create during the first quarter of the year with vacancies created by
people who voluntarily leave their jobs for various reasons, there is a level
of opportunity and turnover in the job market that opens new doors for determined
job hunters. With renewed effort and
focus, you can turn yourself into one of those determined job hunters!

Sheryl Silver's experience as a
recruiter and outplacement consultant enables her to bring a real world
perspective to her blogs about job hunting, career management and the latest
employment trends.